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The safest way to move a WordPress site to Cloudways is to launch the destination application, back up the existing site, run the free Cloudways WordPress Migrator or request a managed migration, test everything on the temporary Cloudways URL, and only then point DNS to the new server. The file and database transfer does not change DNS automatically, so visitors continue reaching the old host until you make the cutover.
This guide uses “migrate to Cloudways” because that is the workflow documented by Cloudways. If you meant moving a site away from Cloudways, you need the destination host’s importer and a different set of access details, although the backup, testing, DNS, SSL, and rollback principles still apply.
What you need before starting
A migration is a controlled copy followed by a DNS change, not a single button that instantly moves every part of a website. Make an inventory before touching the source host. This prevents overlooked services from failing after the domain starts resolving to Cloudways.
- Every primary domain, parked domain, subdomain, and domain alias.
- Mailboxes, forwarding rules, and any external email provider records. Website files and a WordPress database do not automatically move your mail service.
- Scheduled tasks, including WordPress cron jobs and server-level cron entries.
- Redirect rules, canonical settings, sitemap configuration, analytics, tag managers, webhooks, API integrations, and payment callbacks.
- WooCommerce orders, customer accounts, subscriptions, coupons, and any other data that changes while the migration is running.
- Plugin and theme licenses, activation limits, and settings that depend on the old server’s hostname or IP address.
- A complete, restorable backup of the source files and database. Keep the backup away from the source server as well as on it.
Do not cancel the old hosting account after the copy finishes. Cloudways specifically advises keeping it until DNS has propagated and you have confirmed that the latest website data is available on Cloudways.
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Choose the migration method
Most single-site migrations can use the Cloudways WordPress Migrator. A managed migration is appropriate when you want Cloudways staff to perform the move or the site has unusual requirements. Manual SFTP and database work gives an experienced administrator maximum control, but it also creates more opportunities for errors.
| Route | Best fit | Advantages | Risks and requirements |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cloudways WordPress Migrator | Most standard WordPress and WooCommerce sites | Guided, automated transfer; Cloudways describes it as free | You need WordPress administrator access on the source and accurate destination SFTP and database details |
| Cloudways managed migration | Owners who prefer expert handling or have an unusual setup | Cloudways staff perform the migration after receiving access and backup information | Provide complete access, timing, and testing information; scope and pricing are not stated in the cited migration documentation |
| Manual SFTP and database transfer | Experienced administrators who need direct control | Direct control over files, database search-and-replace, permissions, and cutover | More chances for URL, serialized-data, permissions, PHP, cron, email, and redirect problems |
Prepare the Cloudways destination
- Launch the application. In the Cloudways console, create a WordPress application on the server and plan to use its temporary application URL while you test. Select the server resources and region appropriate for your site; the migration process itself does not transfer the old host’s server configuration.
- Open Access Details. Copy the destination URL, server IP address, SFTP host, database name, SFTP username, and SFTP password. Store them in a password manager rather than a shared document. A single incorrect character can make the Migrator fail authentication.
- Confirm the destination is empty or disposable. A fresh application is simplest. If you already installed WordPress there, identify which files and database tables must be replaced so that the old and new copies do not become mixed.
- Plan DNS separately. The data transfer does not point your domain to the new server. Identify the DNS provider and the records that will eventually need to reference the Cloudways server IP. Leave the live records unchanged until testing is complete.
Method 1: use the Cloudways WordPress Migrator
Install the plugin on the source site
- Sign in to the existing WordPress dashboard.
- Open Plugins > Add New, search for Cloudways WordPress Migrator, and install the plugin published for the Cloudways migration workflow.
- Activate it and open its migration screen. Run the migration from the source site, not from the new Cloudways dashboard.
The plugin needs the source site to remain reachable while it copies data. Do not update WordPress, themes, plugins, or content during the transfer unless the migration instructions specifically require it.
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Enter the destination details
Enter the temporary destination URL and the SFTP and database credentials copied from Cloudways Access Details. Use the exact host, database name, username, and password. Do not substitute the public domain for the temporary URL at this stage; the domain still points to the old server.
The Migrator can request additional information when a site is not a simple root-level WordPress install:
- Select the correct root directory if WordPress is installed in a subdirectory or the source uses a custom document root.
- Select additional database tables when a plugin stores data outside the standard WordPress table set.
- Disclose password protection if the source site is protected by an HTTP password or similar access gate. The migration service must be able to reach the files and database.
Start the copy and monitor it
Start the migration only after the credentials and paths have been checked. Keep the source online until the plugin reports completion. A successful file copy alone is not enough: the database, uploads, custom tables, and configuration must all be present.
If the plugin stops, record the exact error before changing settings. Authentication failures usually indicate an incorrect SFTP host, username, password, or port. A path error usually means the selected root directory does not match the source installation. A database error usually means the database name or credentials are wrong, or that the source database user cannot read all required tables.
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Method 2: request a managed Cloudways migration
Choose managed migration when you would rather provide the access information and let Cloudways handle the transfer. Cloudways documentation describes managed migration as a separate route from the free Migrator plugin.
- Prepare a complete source backup and the inventory described earlier.
- Submit the migration request through Cloudways’ migration or onboarding process.
- Provide the source hosting access, WordPress administrator access when requested, the destination application details, and any password protection or custom-path information.
- Tell the migration team about WooCommerce activity, staging or maintenance windows, multisite configuration, external databases, cron jobs, and integrations that need testing.
- Agree on a time for the final synchronization if the site continues to receive orders, registrations, comments, or form submissions.
- After Cloudways reports completion, perform your own functional tests before changing DNS. A completed transfer is not the same as a verified production site.
The reviewed Cloudways migration pages do not establish a universal price, turnaround time, uptime guarantee, or success rate for managed migrations. Confirm the current scope and timing directly during the request.
Method 3: perform a manual transfer
Manual migration is a fallback for administrators who require direct control or whose setup does not fit the plugin. The high-level sequence is to export the source database, copy the WordPress files to the Cloudways application over SFTP, import the database, update the WordPress configuration to the destination database credentials, and correct URLs and permissions as needed.
Manual work is especially sensitive to serialized WordPress data. A simple text replacement in a database dump can corrupt serialized values and break widgets, menus, or plugin settings. Use a migration-aware search-and-replace method, then test the site before the domain cutover. Also check that PHP versions, extensions, file permissions, uploads, rewrite rules, cron behavior, and outbound email are compatible with the destination.
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Do not treat a manual copy as complete until the destination loads with the temporary URL and the database contains the expected content. Keep the original database and files untouched so you can repeat the import or roll back.
Prevent data loss during the move
Static brochure or portfolio sites
If no one can publish content or submit data during the migration window, the final difference between the two copies is usually small. Still, take the backup immediately before migration and verify forms and email because those can fail independently of the page copy.
WooCommerce and other high-change sites
Orders, customer accounts, stock, comments, bookings, and form submissions can change while DNS still points to the old host. Cloudways warns that changes made during this period do not automatically appear on the migrated copy. Use one of these controls:
- Schedule a maintenance window and pause orders or content changes while you perform the final copy.
- Complete the first migration, then perform a final synchronization immediately before DNS cutover.
- Temporarily route operational systems so that no new records are written to the old database during the final sync.
Record the newest order number, user registration, and published content before the final sync. After migration, compare those records on Cloudways. Never assume that a visual page check proves that transactional data arrived.
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Cloudways recommends reviewing the migrated website before DNS is updated so problems can be fixed before visitors use the new copy. Use the temporary Cloudways URL or another pre-cutover testing method that reaches the destination application without changing public DNS.
- Representative pages: Open the home page, several posts or products, category and archive pages, and a page with a custom template.
- Media: Open images, downloadable files, responsive image sizes, galleries, and any media loaded from a CDN or external storage.
- Permalinks: Follow internal links and test a direct URL for a post, product, category, attachment, and any custom post type.
- WordPress access: Sign in as an administrator and confirm that user roles, dashboards, scheduled posts, and plugin settings are present.
- Search and forms: Test site search, contact forms, registration, password reset, and confirmation messages.
- Commerce: Add an item to the cart, change quantities, apply a coupon, complete checkout in a safe test mode, and verify order notifications and payment callbacks.
- Email: Send transactional and administrative messages. Check the configured sender, reply address, and delivery path.
- Scheduled work: Confirm cron jobs, backups, feeds, imports, reports, and any server-level scheduled tasks.
- Redirects and SEO: Test old URL redirects, canonical URLs, robots settings, XML sitemaps, and analytics or tag-manager events.
- Integrations: Check webhooks, API keys, license activations, shipping or tax services, and external callbacks that may be restricted by IP or hostname.
- Performance-sensitive behavior: Confirm that page caching, object caching, image optimization, and CDN behavior do not serve stale or incomplete pages.
Document each test and its result. Fix issues on the Cloudways copy while the old site remains live; do not make untracked changes on both hosts.
Change DNS only after validation
- At the DNS provider, identify the record that serves the public website, normally the domain’s web record and any required subdomain records.
- Point the web record to the Cloudways server IP shown in Access Details. DNS changes are separate from the migration and are not made automatically by the plugin or managed service.
- Leave mail-related records unchanged unless your email service is also being moved. Changing web hosting should not accidentally replace MX, SPF, DKIM, or DMARC records.
- Watch the old and new sites during propagation. Different networks may continue resolving the old address for a period of time.
- Check the public domain from more than one network and confirm that it serves the Cloudways copy, not merely the temporary URL.
Do not publish new content or accept orders on the old host after cutover unless you have a documented rollback plan. For a store, compare the latest order and customer data again once the public domain reaches Cloudways.
Configure SSL, HTTPS, and caches
After the domain resolves to Cloudways, configure the SSL certificate for the domain in the Cloudways application. If you are supplying an existing certificate, have the certificate, private key, and any required chain available; otherwise use the certificate option supported by your Cloudways account.
- Install or upload the certificate and wait until Cloudways reports that it is active for the intended hostname.
- Open the public domain over HTTPS and confirm that the certificate matches the hostname and that there are no mixed-content warnings.
- Only after HTTPS works, force HTTPS in WordPress or the Cloudways controls. Enabling redirects first can create a redirect loop or make the site inaccessible when the certificate is not ready.
- Purge the application, plugin, server, and CDN caches that may still contain the old host’s HTML or URLs.
- Repeat the homepage, login, form, checkout, redirect, and asset tests using the real domain.
Multisite and other special cases
WordPress Multisite
Cloudways’ Migrator guide states that WordPress Multisite is currently supported only on Cloudways Flexible. Confirm the destination plan before starting. A network migration also requires every site in the network, mapped domain, user, and network setting to be tested.
Subdomain networks
Subdomain-based networks need DNS coverage for each subdomain and careful wildcard SSL planning. Moving only the main domain can leave subsites unreachable. Verify that wildcard records and certificates cover the exact network pattern you use.
Subdirectory networks
Subdirectory networks have different domain and rewrite requirements. Test several subsites, media URLs, network administration, and login redirects rather than checking only the primary site.
Password-protected staging sites
Tell the Migrator or managed-migration team about HTTP authentication or other access controls. A migration process that cannot reach the protected files may copy an incomplete site.
Sites with external services
Payment gateways, webhooks, license servers, analytics, and APIs may allow-list the old IP address or depend on a hostname. Update those services after the destination is verified and before you remove the old server.
Troubleshoot common failures
| Symptom | Likely cause | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| The Migrator cannot connect | Incorrect destination credentials or blocked access | Re-copy the SFTP host, username, password, database name, and destination URL from Access Details; check whether the source host blocks outbound connections |
| Pages load but images or downloads are missing | Incomplete uploads copy or an incorrect root directory | Confirm the WordPress uploads path, custom directories, file ownership, and any external storage configuration |
| The home page works but inner URLs return errors | Permalink or rewrite configuration was not reproduced | Save the WordPress permalink settings, test direct URLs, and inspect redirect rules |
| Orders or registrations are absent | New data was written to the old host after the first copy | Pause changes, perform a final synchronization, and compare the newest records before DNS cutover |
| Login redirects between hosts | Old site URLs remain in the database, cookies, or a security plugin | Check site URL values, HTTPS settings, caches, and security-plugin trusted domains |
| HTTPS shows warnings or loops | Certificate not active, mixed content, or HTTPS forced too early | Verify the certificate for the public hostname, then enable HTTPS redirects and purge caches |
| Email stopped after cutover | Mail DNS or SMTP settings were changed or still reference the old server | Leave mail records intact, test SMTP credentials, and review sender-domain authentication |
| Scheduled jobs no longer run | Source cron entries were not transferred | Inventory WordPress and server cron jobs, recreate them on Cloudways, and verify a real execution |
Keep a rollback path
Rollback is easiest when the old host remains intact. Keep the old account, files, database, DNS details, and backups until the new site has passed propagation and a complete post-cutover validation.
- Record the Cloudways and old-host DNS values before changing anything.
- Keep a timestamped backup from immediately before the final synchronization.
- If a critical defect appears, restore the DNS record to the old server while you investigate. This does not recover data written to the Cloudways copy, so record and reconcile any transactions created during the rollback window.
- Fix the destination, repeat the final synchronization if necessary, and perform the validation checklist again before another cutover.
What the documented guidance does—and does not—promise
The official migration pages reviewed for this workflow were published June 29, 2026 (the end-to-end guide and the single-site/multisite Migrator guide) and July 24, 2026 (the onboarding guide). They describe the Migrator as free and document managed migration, but they do not publish an independent downtime figure, performance benchmark, migration success rate, or universal managed-migration price.
Your actual interruption risk depends on how quickly the site changes, whether you perform a final synchronization, DNS behavior, cache settings, and the complexity of integrations. Testing before DNS and retaining the old host are the controls that make the move recoverable.
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